Jon Nix 644's page

James Jacobs wrote:

Jon Nix 644 wrote:

another important question just dawned on me - are there any plans to "de-claw" Ceoptra? i'm hoping not after all at that late stage in the story the party needs some real hellish challenges and i'm not sure if that particular scenario could afford to be downgraded

If anything, she got tougher.

GOOD TO HEAR

i'm very happy to hear that, like i said i wasn't sure that particular part of the Spires of Xin-Shalast posed as much of a challenge as it could've and am very much looking forward to it being more punishing

these people don't lose anywhere near as much money as you'd think as there are many hundreds of ways that they recoup their losses. it's not about them being weird or enjoying losing money either, it's about the simple fact that businesses spend billions of dollars a year on efforts to control peoples spending habits, Hollywood just has realitively easier methods at their disposal than other industries do. if you had a greater understanding of business and economics you'd know where i was going with this (and please don't take that in any sort of derogatory way, im simply accepting that i probably spend more time with my nose buried in books on random subjects than other people do)

to blame the fans is really the wrong direction to go, the fault really lies at the feet of Hollywood producers who pour money into poorly written scripts, then hire directors who very publicly state how little regard they have for the fans (thus alienating the target audience), after all this the producers act surprised when these films bomb. this is similar to how fox executives treated Firefly (a show they fully expected, and wanted to bomb) randomly pre-empting episodes, changing time slots regularly, and playing the episodes out of order all so they could blame flagging interest in the genre (ie: blaming the fans) for the show failing. these people have a habit of handling things this way, tired of making films in a particular genre, make substandard garbage, let it bomb, then use this as evidence that no ones interested anymore. it may seem counter-intuitive to those on the outside, but there is a perfectly sound point of logic to it from a business standpoint, it's just far to involved to go into here and i'm not particularly good at simplifying things sorry.

edit: the simplest i way i can condense this is to say it like this - sometimes people involved in high stakes industries stand to gain more by taking a temporary loss, than they do by making an imediate profit.

star wars doesn't qualify as gritty sci fi no matter how you look at it, it's a far more hopeful even in it's darkest moments there's always hope, i think the op's original question was aimed at the absence of high quality series based on dystopic visions of the future there are some like Firefly (i don't count the new BSG here because it's really an alternate past, otherwise i would count it as an excelent example), but even Firefly had more moments of brevity than a truly gritty story would allow. as to the notion that there is in fact a glut of good sci fi movies in recent years is severly misguided (also the term space opera originated with the original star trek last i checked, and was a reference to the soap opera like nature of the show) as most of the sci fi movies/series produced in recent years have been sub standard to say the least, with only a very small handful of shining examples of quality story telling interspersed within. as a final note i just want to say it's a tragedy that Asimov's Empire series has never seen an attempt at being interpretted into either a movie or series, you want gritty, that would deliver in spades.

another important question just dawned on me - are there any plans to "de-claw" Ceoptra? i'm hoping not after all at that late stage in the story the party needs some real hellish challenges and i'm not sure if that particular scenario could afford to be downgraded

thank you for answering my question and for the peek at the yet to be edited Pathfinder build for the PoEA, must say i am relieved to see that the changes are very minor and primarily aimed at the differences in design philosophy between the two rules systems.

now that you mention it i have noticed (but only vauguely) prior to it's mention here the disappearance of the designer notes sidebars from other ap's .. so with that in mind i can see why you would choose to do away with them from an editorial standpoint

Desna's kiss - a highly alcoholic (and reputedly hallucinogenic) questionably legal Taldan absinthe popular amongst artists and others of a generally bohemian lifestyle but reviled by the upper classes, also a popular import in some regions in spite of having been banned as a dangerous narcotic by many goverments of southern Avistan and northern Garund

trollhound's mark - a widely brewed very low quality beer recipe known for it's pungent, acrid odor, dark color, and foul taste which leaves many wondering if the brewer doesn't simply keep a pack of trollhounds which are then allowed to "relieve" themselves in the kegs. not particularly popular with anyone but a staple of many dive bars. no one has ever taken direct credit for originating this abomination of a drink though many are blamed (most often by rival brewers) many small breweries have taken to producing this recipe just to make ends meet

blind kobold - a popular and potent Andoran rum most often served in establishments frequented by sailors. named for the common joke that it's so strong it could blind a kobold (a race who are renowned for their tendency to produce foul alcoholic beverages of nearly poisonous potency) can be found in almost any port city

the only question i do have on this matter is this - are any changes planned for the Pool of Elemental Arcana? - it was after all given a side-bar about it's potential as a "game breaker" so i just want to know in advance if i need to be ready to re-install the original version of this artifact as i personally love it in it's original form whether it's a potential "game breaker" or not .. after all i'm a heavy handed gm and i'm quite skilled at keeping a tight reign on such things and found the original side-bars suggestions more than adequate control for this issue

if this question has been asked and answered already my apologies for not perusing the thread clearly enough to avoid retreading old ground

just have to say i'm very happy to hear that the one previously unmapped section of Runeforge will be recieving a map in the hardcover edition, i already knew i was going to be buying this repackaging of my favorite ap, but now - having read just a few of the changes in store - i know i absolutely have to have this book

hippogriff's tears - an extremely low grade vodka made in Korvosa, and primarily marketed to sable company marines, though it does find it's way into some taverns in Korvosa's lower class districts

lumberjack's folly - a cheap non-aged whiskey brewed in discrete (ie: illegal) stills hidden in the countryside around Falcon's Hollow

i know with a thread this long these ideas have probably all already been mentioned, but these are destinations i'd love to see some ap's focus on

Irrisen

Valenhall / Arcadia

Numeria

Alkenstar / Mana Wastes

Castrovel or Akiton

Vudra

Nex

also i would like to see an ap that has some focus on the Prophecies of Kalistrade in much the same way that the Carrion Crown ap's focus was on the Whispering Way

as a final side note i'm eagerly anticipating the Skull and Shackles ap as a pirate based ap is something i've been looking forward to for some time now

i'm a little confused as to why it would be a paladin of Iomedae rather than a paladin Cayden Cailean carrying around large quantities of alcohol - anyhow that said here are some suggestions for some vodkas

grave's embrace - a vodka brewed in Ustalav; minor enchantments used in it's brewing, and bottling result in the vodka remaining ice cold until exposed to air for extended lengths of time

ember storm - a vodka brewed near Korvosa; this spicy vodka's name comes from the flakes of thileu bark suspended in the brew which cause the drink to produce a shower of sparks when ignited, as well as the brewery's proximity to the cinderlands

i've got a few others that need a little more work on their names will edit them in later